On Becoming a Leader

Judy R. McReynolds is the Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of ArcBest®. Under her visionary leadership, ArcBest has evolved into a multibillion-dollar integrated logistics company — leading the way with cutting-edge technology and customized solutions that help keep the global supply chain moving. McReynolds guides ArcBest with over 30 years of experience in the transportation and logistics industry, including 26 years with the company. In 2010, she was named ArcBest President and CEO, then in 2016, she was elected as Chair of the Board of ArcBest Corporation. Judy is the only member of the company’s senior management who serves on the board.

Building on ArcBest’s 100-year legacy, McReynolds has been the driving force behind diversifying ArcBest into a logistics powerhouse with a full suite of logistics solutions that meet customers’ supply chain needs. Her experience, combined with her commitment to serving customers well, providing the best atmosphere for the company’s employees and conducting business in a way that helps build a safer, more sustainable company and world, has made ArcBest a leader in the logistics industry and a pillar in the communities where ArcBest operates.

McReynolds sits on several outside boards, including OGE Energy Corp., First Bank Corp. and First National Bank. She serves as a member of the Wall Street Journal CEO Council and is recently retired from the American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI) after serving as chair for eight years and from the American Trucking Associations (ATA) Board and Executive Committee. McReynolds contributes to education in Arkansas as a member of the Dean’s Executive Advisory Board of the Sam M. Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas and as a director of the University of Arkansas – Fort Smith Foundation Board. Additionally, McReynolds was named 2019 Distinguished Woman in Logistics by the Women In Trucking Association and was honored as an inductee to the Arkansas Business Hall of Fame in February 2023. A Certified Public Accountant, McReynolds holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting from the University of Oklahoma.

Shelley Simpson is President of J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. Her 29-year career at J.B. Hunt reflects the company’s continued progression as an innovative leader in the transportation and logistics industry.

Since joining J.B. Hunt as an hourly customer service representative, she has held multiple positions for business segments across the company, including most recently serving as Chief Commercial Officer and Executive Vice President of People and Human Resources.

In 2007, Simpson was named President of Integrated Capacity Solutions, a business unit she helped create. While continuing to develop ICS, Simpson assumed sales and marketing executive responsibilities in 2011 and was appointed Chief Marketing Officer. She took on additional leadership in 2014 as President of J.B. Hunt’s Truckload business segment, helping improve the efficiency of the company’s fleet, and in 2016 when she began overseeing customer experience. In 2017, to support the company’s ability to provide comprehensive solutions, J.B. Hunt combined the management of Truckload and ICS services by creating Highway Services, of which she was named President until December 2020.

Simpson was named Chief Commercial Officer in 2017, leading strategic direction of marketing, sales, customer experience, and external product development, including J.B. Hunt 360°, the company’s technology platform for freight matching and operational efficiency. As the company evolved J.B. Hunt 360 and its technology-driven services, Simpson was also responsible for commercializing them on a global scale as the leader of International Services. In 2020, she was named Executive Vice President of People and Human Resources, leading the company’s efforts to create a more inclusive culture and work environment.

Simpson was named President in 2022, and currently provides management and performance oversight for all company business units, in addition to emerging technology, developing services and People and Human Resources. 

Simpson serves on the board for multiple organizations, including the Mercy Health Foundation and the Dean’s Executive Advisory Board for the Sam M. Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas, in addition to serving on the DSA Selection Committee for the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals.

In 2016, she received the Distinguished Woman of the Year award by Women In Trucking and was named 2017 ATHENA Woman of the Year at the NWA Business Women’s Conference. In 2020, she received the Power50 Award by the National Diversity Council and was named a 2020 Top Influencer by Arkansas Money & Politics. In 2021, she was named one of the Top 100 Women in Supply Chain by Supply Chain Digital and has been named one of the top 100 HR Professionals by the National Diversity Council in 2022. She recently received the 2022 Woman of the Year in Innovation award by the Women’s Foundation of Arkansas and the Excellence in Free Enterprise Award from Economics Arkansas.

Originally from Russellville, Simpson graduated from the University of Arkansas with a bachelor’s degree in marketing. She lives in Rogers, AR with her husband David and three children.